Bidding “adieu” to the early season’s day-heavy slates; all 15 Friday games are under the lights.
@White Sox 7, Cleveland 3 — In his 12th big-league game, Danny Salazar set a peculiar and thoroughly modern record: 10 strikeouts in 3.2 innings, the shortest 10-K stint in searchable history. Yet it was still a disaster start, as he surrendered 5 runs on 6 hits, including home runs by Jose Abreu and Alexei Ramirez. Abreu stroked another off Josh Outman; the big-ticket Cuban rookie has 4 HRs, 13 RBI in 10 games.
- Chicago was last in 2013 AL scoring, now tops in the majors at 6 runs per game. Ramirez has 9 ribs, 8 runs and an 1.148 OPS; CF import Adam Eaton has a .375 OBP.
- Salazar faced 19 batters. The 10 other searchable outings with 10+ Ks and less than 20 batters all featured 2 runs or less.
- Felix Hernandez set the “old” record of 10 Ks in 4 IP just last September, a game interrupted by bees.
- Is it another slow start for Adam Dunn, or is this just who he is now?
- This stinks: On Tuesday, Avisail Garcia had 2 HRs and 4 hits, each for the first time. Wednesday, he drew two walks for the first time, and made this diving catch to rob DJ LeMahieu. Two innings later, same batter, same play: Torn labrum, done for the year.
Salazar has struck out 31% of all batters. Dwight Gooden in 1984 was the first qualified starter with such a year; it’s been done 14 more times since 1995, half those by Randy Johnson. But Salazar has also allowed a .246 batting average and .422 slugging — .024 and .050 higher than any of those 15 seasons. At 24, he’s in his 7th year of U.S. pro ball, but until last year he never went past 107 innings; he’s still learning his craft.
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Brewers 6, @Phillies 2 — Brewer bats went to bed with a hangover last week, and woke up in a strange city. After scoring 5 total runs while dropping two of three in their home-opening series, Milwaukee’s averaged 7 runs on 13 hits while winning six straight — their best road streak since a 9-gamer in 2008, on their way to the playoffs. They caught the Phils at the right time, i.e., when they’re old.
- Carlos Gomez went 14 for 31 on the trip, with 6 extra-base hits.
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Pirates 5, @Cubs 4 — Once again, the Bucs scored only on homers, but these two rides took passengers. Pedro Alvarez drove the big bus, converting James Russell’s first-pitch local into a 3-run express. Although Gerrit Cole fanned 10 Cubs in 6 IP, Travis Wood was even better over that span, putting Cole on the hook. But the battle of bullpens was a predictable mismatch.
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@Nationals 7, Marlins 1 — Vintage Stephen Strasburg, and no geometric precision by Arquimedes Euclides Caminero. Strasburg gave up a leadoff single, faced down a man-on-third, no-out muddle, and then took over. He breezed through the 5th with only an infield error; the tying runs reached with one out in the 6th, on an infield hit and a plunk, but he whiffed Giancarlo Stanton and Garrett Jones. Marcell Ozuna’s 7th-inning solo halved the lead, and Strasburg left with two outs after his only walk, finishing with 12 Ks. It was still 2-1 when Caminero started the 8th and found instant trouble with two hits, and two 4-pitch walks forced home one. Ian Desmond cut at the first pitch and missed, but his next swing was more successful.
- In 2012, Desmond’s 47% first-pitch swing rate and 3.37 pitches/PA were the NL’s most extreme, but you can’t argue with .292, 25 HRs and a 125 OPS+. He was a little more patient last year, accepting a career-high 43 walks, but he’s back in attack mode so far.
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@Yankees 4, Red Sox 1 — Michael Pineda was strong over six in his first Yankees win, letting no Sox reach second until David Ortiz doubled with two gone in the 6th, and the patchwork bullpen set down the last nine in order. New York nicked Clay Buchholz for two unearned runs in the 4th, starting with an error by fill-in third baseman Jonathan Herrera, and tallied twice more in the 5th, on Dean Anna’s first-ever homer and two-out hits by Jeter and Ellsbury. With David Robertson out and Shawn Kelley struggling last night, erstwhile long man David Phelps earned his first career save with seven smooth outs, fanning the #3-4-5 men.
- Did Pineda take notes from The Gambler?
- Has anyone acted on Adam Jones’s latest suggestion? I think this one’s perfectly reasonable.
- Stories like this one make instant Onion-dip: Just add “said the new billionaire” after each quote.
- Dean Anna’s batting stance reminds me of someone from recent years, but I can’t pin it down. Anyone? (No joke here.)
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Mets 6, @Braves 4 — New York came out on top of a see-saw game, for a rare series win in Atlanta. Eric Young and Daniel Murphy carried the offense from the top: 3 hits, 3 steals and 4 runs for E.Y., with Murphy driving him in three times and scoring the other 2 runs. David Hale (4th career start) and Jenrry Mejia (13th) both labored and were done by the 5th, combining for 9 walks. Mejia had no answer for Justin Upton, who hit his first two home runs, a wall-scraper to right and a moonbeam to left. But Carlos Torres dried up Atlanta’s offense in the 6th and 7th, erasing his only baserunner with a shrewd move on a bad bunt. The old-boy network of Kyle Farnsworth each got 3 quick outs, and have allowed just one run in 10.1 innings combined.
- Farnsworth is 2nd in games among active pitchers, Papa Grande now 9th. Don’t think that I’m drinking the kool-aid; odds are that both will hit the skids. But they’re getting it done right now, and filling a massive void.
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Astros 6, @Blue Jays 4 — Taters mashed by the #8-9 hitters brought all 5 of the runs against R.A. Dickey.
- Dickey’s allowed 29 HRs in 23 career starts in Toronto, with 24 in 19 home games as a Blue Jay.
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Athletics 6, @Twins 1 — Dan Straily gave up an early home run and little else over seven, while the A’s strafed poor Mike Pelfrey for 6 runs in 5+ IP. Big Pelf walked 4 and whiffed 3; his career 1.62 SO/BB is the lowest of active starters with 1,000 IP.
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Diamondbacks 6, @Giants 5 (10 inn.) — Tony Campana brought in the tying run in the 8th and the decider two frames later, each with two outs and two strikes, recording the highest WPA so far this year and (incidentally) leading the Snakes to their first 2-game win streak. Viewer advisory: This clip of Campana’s game-winner has a brief glimpse of torture (a.k.a the Hunter Pence throwing motion).
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And finally … wouldja believe? … “Baseball’s Half-Hexagon“:
These are the Brandonest possible words:
“Hicks and Crawford and Belt.”
Trio of namesakes, with visages furred,
Hicks and Crawford and Belt.
Using the seagulls to sneak a cheap double,
Building their moundsman a protective bubble,
But if the ball’s hit to Panda, there’s trouble,
For Hicks, and Crawford, and Belt.
